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N0. 621,424. Patented Mar. 2|, |899.

L. H. LEADAM. f

BDOT T-REE.

(Application filed July 13, 189B.)

(No Model.)

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Nrrn rares LIONEL II. LEADAM, OF NEIV YORK, N. Y.

BOOT-TREE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 621,424, dated March 21, 1899.

Application led July l 3 1 89 8.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, LIONEL H. LEADAina citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of NewYork and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Trees for Boots and Shoes, ot' which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to trees for boots and shoes, and is designed more particularly as an improvement on the tree forming the subject-matter of my application filed April 7, 1898, Serial No. 676,759.

The general object of my present invention is to provide a tree which while strong and durable and reliable in operation is extremely cheap and simple and is therefore adapted to be sold with profit for a small price.

With this end in view the invention will be fully understood from the following description and claims when taken in'con'jnn'ction with the annexed drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a section illustrating the manner in which my improved tree is placed in a shoe. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the tree. Fig. 3 is a transversel section taken in the plane indicated by the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. lC is a detail perspective view of a modification.

Referring by letter to said drawings, and more particularly to Figs. l to 3 thereof,Ais the toe or front member of myimproved tree, which is preferably formed by a solid block of wood and is provided in its rear end with a kerf a. B is the heel or rear member, and C is the intermediate member, which has for its purpose to adjustably connect the toe and heel members and to thrust the same in opposite directions, so as to'properly stretch, flatten, and straighten the sole and shape the upper of a shoe and x the tree in the same.

In the preferred embodiment of my invention the heel member B is cast in the loop form shown and has the forward portions of its arms c arranged parallel and connected by a pin d. The intermediate member C may be either cast or stamped from sheet metal, as 4 desired. It has one end arranged in the kerf a of the toe member A and pivotally connected to said member and is provided with a longitudinal slot @closed at its opposite ends, and a plurality of notches f, the said Serial No. 685 ,845 (No model.)

notches extending laterally from said slot and being slightly pitched forward, as shown, for a purpose presently described.

The pin d, connecting the arins of the heel member B, rests in the slot e of the member C and permanently connects said members together. It is also designed to be seated in any one of the notches f, opening out of the slot e, to adjustably fix said members with respect to each other and lit the tree to shoes of different sizes. By reason of the notches no liability of the pin d being casually displaced when the toe and heel members bear against a shoe. Such slight pitch of the notches also serves to place the pressure or strain against the main portion of the member C rather than against the partitions intermediate of the notches f, which removes the liability of said partitions being broken in operation.

In using the tree the heel member B and intermediate member C are held and used as a handle for the convenient introduction of the toe member Ato the forward portion of a shoe. The heel member is then swung down into the position shown in Fig. 1, after which the bar O is used as a lever, and its rear end is depressed until the pin d rests in a dead-center, with the pin connecting the intermediate and toe members and thepoint at which the member B bears against the shoe. This will thrust the toe and heel members in opposite directions in the shoe and will enable the tree to remove all wrinkles and straighten the sole and keep the shoe in perfect shape. To remove the tree when desired, it is simply necessary to raise the heel and intermediate members at the point of iiexure, when the tree may be readily withL drawn.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that my improved tree is strong and durable, is easily adjusted and efficient in construction, and is so simple and cheap as to admit of it being sold with profit for a small price, which is a desideratum.

In Fig. 4 I have illustrated a heel member o and a modified intermediatev member O'. The heel member B is cast in the form shownthat is to say, like the heel members in Figs.

f being pitched forwardly, as stated, there is loo before described, is preferably cast or stamped from sheet metal and has notches f in one edge, the said notches being preferably pitched for the purpose before pointed out.

The heel memberis held to the member O' by a pivoted strap g, which straddles said member O', and the pin d of the heel member is designed to seat in the notches of the member O' after the manner shown. As will be readily observed by reference to Fig. 4, the strap g is of such a length as to permit of the pin d being drawn out of a notchf' when it is desired to adjust the heel member with respect to the intermediate member.

The construction disclosed in Fig. 4 is operated in the same way as that shown in Figs. l to 3 and possesses the same advantagesviz, it is strong and durable and reliable in operation and is also extremely simple and cheap.

\Vhile I prefer, as stated, to form the heel members of cast metal, I desire it understood that they might be stamped out of sheet metal possessing suiicient rigidity for'the purposes of my invention and bent into the shape desi red.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim is- 1. The herein-described tree for boots and shoes comprising a toe or forward member,

an intermediate member pivotally connected to the toe member and having notches at intei-vals in its length, and a heel member adjustably connected to the intermediate member and having a pin arranged to seat in the notches thereof, substantially as spccied.

2.' The herein-described tree for boots and shoes comprising a toe or forward member, an intermediate member pivotallyeonnected to the toe member and having a longitudinal slot closed at its ends and lateral notches opening from said slot, and a heel member having a pin connecting it to the intermediate member; the said pin being adapted to be moved in the slot and seated in the notches .of the said intermediate member, substantially as specified.V

3. The herein-described tree for boots and shoes comprising a toe or forward member, an intermediate member formed by a strip of metal pivotally connected to the toe member and having a longitudinal slot closed at its ends and lateral notches opening from said slot, and a heel member of loop form having its ends connected together and to the intermediate member by a transverse pin adapted to be moved in the slot and seated in the notches of the intermediate member, substantially as specified.

4. Thetree described com prisin g a toe m ember, an intermediate member pivotally connected to the toe memberand having notches at intervals in its length pitched upwardly toward its forward end, and a heel member adjustably connected to the intermediate member and having a pin arranged to seat in the notches thereof, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LIONEL II. LEADAM.

Witnesses:

T. O. OVERTON, E. A. OVERTON. 

